Back In Black
by JustAWriter101
Summary: Sam and Dean head to Boston on a case to find out who/what has made three girls spontaneously disappear from their houses within the same week. At first, the boys think it's just a greedy siren, but when Sam is, once again, infected, it is revealed that this isn't a breed of siren the Winchester brothers have ever encountered before. Sick!Hurt!Limp!Sam Angsty!Determined!Dean
1. Chapter 1

"Hey, get up." Sam shoved the lump that was his brother, Dean, under the covers of the motel room's bed. "We got work to do." The younger brother let a yawn escape from his own lips as he set a tray of coffee on the table.

"What time 's it?" Dean mumbled, not attempting to move from his position under the warm comforter.

"Uh, 7:30" Sam checked his watch. "I got some coffee for ya too." He tried to coax his brother out of his sleepy mood. To his relief, Dean swung his legs over the bed and ran a hand through his short hair.

"When'd you get up?" Dean looked at his brother questioningly.

"Not long ago."

"Long enough to get up, shower, shave and drive to buy coffee." Dean edited. Sam sighed.

"I'll sleep when I'm dead." He yawned again.

"Which'll be soon at the rate you're going." Sam quickly gave his brother an are-you-kidding-me look.

"Are you done?" He asked irritably as he stood and grabbed his laptop from his bed. He then opened it on the table next to the untouched coffee and waited for the screen to turn on. "Plus, I found us a case." Dean was pulling on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt when he turned to raise an eyebrow at Sam.

"Did you also get a tattoo on your a*s, while I was asleep?" He asked. It was a playful tease, so his early-bird brother didn't feel the need to react to it at all.

"I'm thinking Boston. Three girls in the same area have mysteriously disappeared in the last week." Dean waltzed over to the table and grabbed a coffee, taking a quick swig.

"What makes you think that's our thing?" He asked curiously.

"Well, the disappearances were within six hours of each other, and each parent claims that they were in the room with their daughters, when they disappeared. The way they tell it, the power goes out, and the room goes black. Then, when the power's back on-"

"Their daughter has pulled a houdini." Dean finished.

"Exactly. You up for it?" Sam asked for confirmation.

"Let's hit the road." He nodded.


	2. Chapter 2

The impala pulled up to a large brick apartment building in the center of Boston. "Smell that air, Sammy. That's the smell of beer, motor oil and smokes." Dean smiled, rubbing his hands together.

"Yeah, it smells like every motel we've stayed in... ever." The brother replied sarcastically.

"Yeah, but this is the _fresh_ air, here." Dean informed Sam, who rolled his eyes while straightening his tie as they both walked up the cement stairs to enter the building's lobby.

The room was practically made of marble, and a worn out red carpet stretched to meet the fireplace that housed a flame the size of one that normally resided on the wick of a birthday candle.

Both the boys approached the front desk where an old man stood staring off at nothing. His beard was an even mix of gray and white, but his eyes were a pale blue that stood out.

"Hey." Dean waved a hand in front of the man. When a response wasn't given, the older brother turned to Sam who sent back a confused shrug. "Wakey wakey." Dean said, tapping the gold bell on the desk. The old man jumped at the noise.

"Oh, hello, boys!" He exclaimed. "Do speak up. I'm a trifle deaf in one ear." A thousand sassy comments spun around Dean's mind like ' _right, HEARING is the main problem with you'_ , but he managed to suppress them. Sam decided it would be best if he took over from there.

"We're with the F.B.I. We've come to investigate some disappearances in the area. A girl went missing in this building a few nights ago."

The man looked apprehensive. "Can I see some ID?"

"I dunno. _Can_ you?" Dean couldn't help but mumble under his breath. Sam stomped on his brother's foot as hard as he could at the moment they both raised the fake IDs and badges they had in order to investigate different crime scenes. Dean shot a glare to Sam that could have killed him, but the man at the desk didn't even see it happen because he had to grab Sam's hand and pull it an inch away from his face, before he finally evaluated it and spoke.

"All right." He nodded. "First apartment on the right. Third floor."

"Thank you, Sir." Sam nodded, his lip turning up in a thankful smirk.

As they both headed to the elevator, Dean lashed out in an angry whisper. "Dude! Really?! You and stomping on people's feet..."

"Call me when your filter comes in the mail!" Sam whispered back harshly. Both boys turned away from each other to roll their eyes. Soon the elevator bell went off, and they both filed inside. "you know…" Sam started.

"I swear if you try to sass me again, Sam-"

"This is about the case, Dean." He interrupted. It looked like Dean wanted to comment, but he couldn't argue with his brother wanting to get back to work.

"What?" He granted Sam the right to continue.

"This is a pretty big building, right?"

"Sure." Dean nodded, not sure where this was going.

"Where is everyone?" Sam asked. "That lobby was empty and so is this elevator." The bell rang as they arrived on the third floor, before Dean had time to answer.

"What?" He asked as they walked out, "You think there were more disappearances than we know of?"

"I dunno. It's just something to think about." Sam shrugged. They turned to the right and knocked on the door. It opened just a slit a few minutes later, the chain lock was still latched.

"Who are you?" The voice was stern and uptight. It belonged to a middle aged man whose eye was peering into the hall.

"F.B.I" Dean said as he and Sam held up their badges. "We're here to investigate a disappearance." They listened to the door close followed by several locks unlatching. The door then opened completely and granted the boys entrance.

"I suppose you're here about my daughter." It wasn't a question. Both Sam and Dean spun around to look at the man who had opened the door.

"She vanished a few days ago, right?" Sam asked gingerly.

"She was taken!" He corrected. "I'm sure of it!"

"Robert." A woman cautioned from the kitchen, which was a few meters away from the doorway. The room was behind a wall, so she was out of sight when she spoke. Eventually, she came out, clad in a small blue dress and apron.

"Baking is her stress reliever." Robert told the brothers quietly as she approached them.

"Hello" She greeted and wiped her hands on her apron. "I'm Mary, and this is my husband, Robert." She turned to him "You didn't tell me we were going to have company."

"That's our fault." Sam assured the woman. "Uh, we didn't call ahead. We're with the F.B.I, and we were wondering if you'd be willing to talk with us for a few minutes and describe what happened with…"

"Meredith." She said with tears forming in her eyes.

"Uh… Yes. Your daughter, Meredith." Sam nodded.

All four of them walked toward a small coffee table positioned in front of a TV. The apartment was small, but not any smaller than the motel rooms the Winchesters often occupied. Mary and Robert sat on the couch, while Sam and Dean pulled two loveseats away from the wall and positioned them toward the couple.

"Could you two walk us through that night?" Dean asked.

"Well…" Robert started. "Meredith is our only daughter… and we were just sitting here watching Jeopardy, you know, because it's a fantastic family program?"

"Sure." Sam and Dean showed off their acting skills with slight nods.

"So Meredith was beating both Mary and me by about $1,000, when all of a sudden, the power went out."

"Meredith screamed." Mary added fearfully.

"Next thing we know-"

"The lights are back and Meredith's gone." Dean finished.

"Correct." Robert affirmed. "We already gave our statement to the police-"

"Was anything weird beforehand?" Sam asked "Noises, smells?"

"Meredith had been growing quiet for a few hours; you know, she was slightly less vocal than usual. but other than that, everything was normal. She was a relatively quiet girl anyway." They both shrugged and looked at each other sadly.

"When you let us in, you mentioned that you thought your daughter was taken?" Dean asked Robert.

"Well… it's just a theory…"

"You can tell us." Sam encouraged, but the subject seemed to push Mary to look away uncomfortably.

"Meredith has always been a straight A student… and then she met this girl, Hayley, who seemed a little… out of Meredith's league."

"Dangerous?" Dean asked.

"Who knows?! The girl's a juvenile delinquent!"

"Robert!" Mary interjected.

"It's true!"

"And they became friends?" Sam asked.

"Best friends." Mary said quietly.

"Could we have her address?" Dean asked. Robert was all too eager to write it down and hand it over. Then there was an awkward silence.

"I think it's time we wrap this up." Mary suggested.

"Thank you for your time." Sam nodded to them, "Here's our number if anything else comes up." Sam handed Robert the card, and both brothers left the apartment. Once again, they found themselves in the elevator.

"She was 'growing quiet'?" Dean repeated with confusion.

"'Think she knew something?" Sam asked.

"I dunno, but some of this isn't adding up. No signs of forced entry. No sounds, smells. Absolutely nothing?"

"At least we know how to confirm if it's definitely our thing." Sam shrugged. The elevator doors opened, and the two brothers made their way through the lobby and to the impala.

"What's that?" Dean asked as he started the car and pulled out of the parking lot.

"Go to this Hayley girl's house and find out if she really had a part in this, or if it's just a case of overprotective dad."

"I don't know about that, Sammy. Actual _investigating_? That's a little above our pay grade. Wouldn't the police have arrested her by now if she was involved?"

"Maybe Robert only mentioned her to us. You know, F.B.I; we're a bigger deal than state police." Sam said. "We have to go, Dean."

"You can go hang with Hayley Hannibal. I'm going to investigate the other girls'houses." Dean said happily. "One of them was living with no one but her older sister, who now needs some serious consoling."

"Whatever." Sam shook his head "Can you drop me on the way?"

Dean shrugged "It's your funeral."


	3. Chapter 3

Sam walked up to the front door of Hayley's house and immediately heard the impala speeding away. Dean really wanted to go see that girl, and Sam really wanted to get to the bottom of the case.

"Hey." The ugly screen door opened, and the smell of stale cigarettes filled Sam's sinuses. He coughed three times before responding with a quiet "Hello."

"I don't do charities, girl scout cookies, or stripper grams." The woman was middle-aged with a knotted blonde perm accompanied by dark brown roots. She had a spray tan that made her look double what Sam assumed her age to be, and to reenforce her out-of-style look, she was wearing a droopy floral shirt that exposed most of her drooping chest and super short shorts that suggested there was a recent mix up between her laundry and her teenage daughter's.

"I'm Sam Scott. F.B.I. I'm here to speak with Hayley."

"That money is hers, not that rotten kid at school's. She didn't _take_ his lunch money every year. She _won_ it fair and square." Sam swallowed and immediantly realized what Robert was talking about when he said Hayley was 'out of Meredith's league'. Assuming Hayley was similar to this woman, she'd be the polar opposite to a straight A, jeopardy-watching, family-girl.

"Uh, no. This is about her friend Meredith's disappearance." The woman then came as close to Sam's face as she possibly could without touching him. He could see her cheap lipstick and eyeshadow clumping up on her face in a few places.

"You think she had something to do with that priss running away?"

"Running away?" Sam asked. "What makes you think Meredith ran away?"

"Did you meet her parents? Mr. and Mrs. _Uptight_?" Sam smirked.

"I take it you're not close."

"Mmm." She hummed in agreement, taking a step back to then take a drag of the cigarette Sam hadn't even noticed was in her hand. "But our daughters are. Beats me."

"Could I talk to Hayley?" Sam asked politely.

"What would you do to make that happen?" The woman grinned deviously. "What would 'Sam Scott' do for a Klondike bar? Mmm?"

"Uh…"

"I'm just kiddin'. You feds are wired as tight as a suburban kid's braces." She cackled. "Hay!" She hollered to her daughter. "A fed is here to see you!" There was stomping down stairs before a girl with emo-cut black hair came into view. Her hair's under layers were purple, and her dark eyeliner made her bright aquamarine eyes stand out. She was around Sam's age, and he must have looked startled because she laughed.

"I wasn't on the school campus when he gave me the lunch money." She explained.

"Not that story, Shawshank. This is about Meredith." Her mother told her. The information made Hayley's expression change instantly.

"You have information on it?" She asked hopefully.

"Sorry, I don't, but I'd like to speak with you about your relationship, if you don't mind."

"Fine." She had a diamond piercing in her nose that sparkled when she moved in the sunlight that hit her from the doorway. Sam peeled his eyes away from her's and moved them to stare at the ground.

"May I come in?" He asked.

"I'd rather go outside. My mom's an eavesdropper."

"Really?" The woman placed her hands on her hips.

"If the slipper fits, Cinderella." Hayley responded rudely.

"Meh!" Her mother mocked childishly.

"Mehhh!" Hayley responded. With that, the older woman made her way inside and left them on the doorstep alone. "Sorry." Hayley looked down.

"That's okay." Sam said, lifting his head "Could you start with how you two met?"

Sam spent an hour and a half with Hayley, and pretty soon the girl was reduced to tears. "I'm not perfect," She said honestly, "but I did NOT take that girl. We were real close friends after I babysat her a few times for her ridiculous helicopter parents." Sam nodded.

"I believe you." He said genuinely.

"You do?" She asked, wiping a tear. "No cop who ever questions me actually believes me. Especially feds like you." She stated.

"Judging by how close you two were… I don't think you'd randomly kidnap her. I lost someone close to me not too long ago..."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." They were sitting close together: one was in tears, the other was empathetic, and in the spur of the moment, they kissed. It was deep and lasted a good couple of seconds before Hayley looked into Sam's eyes.

"Ya know, my mom is usually passed out drunk by now…" She smiled gently. "Come with me." Then, she brought him inside.


	4. Chapter 4

"Pick up the phone you-" Dean refrained himself from using a word he'd regret recording later and hung up on Sam's voicemail for the third time. He was on his way to pick up his brother at Hayley's, and he had already assumed Sam would be livid due to the amount of time Dean had spent at the girls' houses. Instead, there _Dean_ was, having trouble getting a hold of _Sam_.

When he pulled up to the small, ugly house, he walked up the front steps and knocked on the door loudly. "Sam?" He called. He soon heard footsteps from behind the door and was relieved to see Sam open it looking completely normal in his F.B.I getup.

"Hey, Dean." He greeted.

"I've been trying to get a hold of you for the past half hour, what happened?"

"Sorry, this investigation was a lot deeper than I thought. Hayley gave me a lot more information than Meredith's parents." Dean nodded.

"Good. I got some news too. Let's go." They both left directly after that. Once they were a good amount of space away from Hayley's house Dean spoke.

"So that sister… got her number. She had a weird eye. I think she saw three of me… but besides that… I got a lot of news."

"Tell me." Sam encouraged.

"Well, at first I was leaning toward shtriga because they would have the motive to feed, but it didn't make sense because the girls were kidnapped not drained."

"Right." Sam agreed. "It doesn't fit the pattern."

Dean nodded, "So then I thought it was a shapeshifter, ya know, taking the girls so that it could look like them and play their roles later, but so far, no one's sighted any of the girls after they've gone missing."

"So what do you think?" Sam asked curiously.

"I'm thinking siren." Dean revealed. "I know we hate 'em, but I think we gotta go back in black and take on another one of these b*stards. Think about it, it's motive is only personal pleasure, and maybe it lures its victims to its den, or whatever, and makes them do what it wants. Maybe even make an army. It makes the most sense, right?"

"Uh… I guess so." Sam shrugged.

"This is where I need your help." Dean admitted. "The sister said she knew Hayley. Apparently, her new relationship with Meredith is something everyone in the area is baffled by. Maybe if all the vics knew Hayley through school, or something, they could have come in contact-"

"You think _Hayley's_ the siren?" Sam asked, not buying it.

"It's our best lead."

"It's not her." Sam disagreed. "I listened to her, Dean. She didn't want Meredith hurt or taken from her family or anything. She's upset."

"She's actin-" Dean paused. Something in Sam's voice made him quickly pull the car over. He shifted in his seat to look his brother right in his puppy dog eyes. "Sam… Did you sleep with her?"

"Who? Hayley? That's… insane."

"So help me, God, Sammy. If that's why you weren't picking up your phone earlier…"

"She's not a siren!"

"How can I be sure?!" Sam was quiet, and he looked down.

"You can't," He admitted. "but I feel extremely strong about this-"

"Okay, so you had sex... Do you love her?" Dean asked.

"What? We just met." Sam said.

"Would you do anything to be with her?" Dean pushed.

"What? No. I'm not infected." He promised. "I'm serious." Dean nodded, driving back to the motel as fast as he could.

When the impala pulled up to the parking lot, Dean grabbed the guns and went inside before Sam had even left the car. Then, he practically thrusted Sam out of the vehicle and into their room. "You're staying here." He said.

"What?!" Sam exclaimed. "Where are you going?"

"To go check out this 'Hayley chick' for myself."

"Why can't I-"

"Because I can't be sure you're not infected. Not until I know, for sure, she's human."

"Dean-"

"Sam." Sam sat on the bed and pouted. The whole conversation was giving him a headache. His own brother didn't trust him!

"Do you _have_ to go tonight?" Sam started to bargain. "Can't you go in the morning? It's late." He would have extra time between then and dawn to prove to Dean he wasn't under a siren's spell. Plus, he didn't like the idea of Dean going to this girl's house when it was already approaching midnight.

"Fine. I'm not turning my back on you, though." Dean compromised. "I already hid all our weapons before I brought you in here."

" _That's_ what you were doing a few minutes ago?" Sam asked "Hiding weapons from me?"

"Hey, if I'm gonna be staying in the same room as someone who may try to kill me, it's better to make sure a fight between us would be skin on skin. I can kick your a*s when it's a no-weapons fight." He smirked proudly.

"Sure." Sam said with extreme sarcasm.

"Don't make me test that theory." Dean cautioned.


	5. Chapter 5

Dean began getting ready for bed as quickly as he could. He knew if Sam was infected and forced to hurt him, he wouldn't be able to keep the feelings at bay until morning. The sooner Dean knew what was true about Hayley, the sooner he _and Sam_ could continue with the investigation.

"Hey." Sam said as he stared at his computer. "I think you might be right about one thing."

"I always am," Dean smirked, changing into sweatpants, "but about what, this time?"

"I think a monster similar to a siren - or a different breed of one - is behind the disappearances."

"Explain." Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Well," Sam rubbed his temple to try to get rid of his headache, "each victim just vanished into thin air without struggling or anything. Maybe they _were_ under the thing's spell before it took them."

"Do you think it passed through saliva like our last encounter?" He grimaced as a flashback played in his head.

"No. Hayley told me Meredith didn't even have a boyfriend. She never kissed anyone." Dean rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, I'm really trusting _her_ right now."

"Maybe… maybe it's a different contact point or something… like through touch." Sam winced as his headache flaired.

"Hey, what's up with you?" Dean's brows furrowed as he made his way over to his brother. "...is this one of those freaky vision things?"

"No… It's just a headache." Sam shook it off.

"It's 'cause you're not sleeping." Dean said, "You're getting sick."

"I'm not sick." Sam denied. He stood up holding his forehead as his thumb and middle finger pressed on his temples. "I just need fresh air" Sam opened the nearest window.

Dean simply raised his eyebrows in disbelief. Sam was clearly in pain; his eyes were closed as tight as he could make them.

Suddenly, the lights flickered, causing Dean to evaluate Sam more closely.

"Sam… I think you were infected."

"You've made that clear." He responded with annoyance.

"Think about it. Your headaches. Remember how Meredith's parents said she was 'growing quiet'?"

"So?" Sam opened his eyes.

"Maybe it was like you. She wasn't feeling well and tried to hide it, then while she was disoriented… poof. The siren was able to drag her away to wherever it didn't even want _her_ to know about."

"That's not gonna happen." Sam shook his head and suddenly got dizzy. He wobbled and almost fell, which didn't go unnoticed to Dean. "Plus, siren's don't make you disoriented. They just make you do whatever task they want fulfilled."

"Okay, so maybe Hayley's not our usual siren… or maybe not even something we've seen before, but if she's infecting through touch, like you said… that could be one example of how she could've gotten you... among other things"

"It doesn't make sense. A person can't just vanish into thin air. How'd she leave the house?" Sam argued.

"Maybe through a window that was previously open. Think about it, Sam." Dean's voice's volume increased, "They were watching TV as a family! You don't think they may have had a window open and didn't even think to tell the cops about it?" Sam placed his hand against the wall to hold himself up and blinked a few times.

"It was the _third_ floor." He said stubbornly.

"So what? People infected by things like sirens don't care about their safety, especially if it's the siren's objective to knock you out cold anyway. Plus it's old brick. You and I both know you can climb down old bricks that are jutting out in different places. There are multiple ways this could have worked!" Dean looked desperate to make his brother believe him, but Sam wasn't taking any of it.

"It wasn't Hayley." he said seriously. "You can't just sit here spitballing to try to make her look guilty." The lights flickered again.

"Sam!"

"Dean." Sam suddenly dropped like a sack of lead. His eyelids were fluttering, trying to stay open, but it was clear that was a losing battle.

"Woah, woah woah." Dean ran over to Sam and hoisted him up by his underarms. He dragged his brother's huge form over to the nearest bed and layed him down. "I can't have you passing out on me, Sammy."

The lights turned off, and the room flooded with darkness.

Dean stroked the walls searching for a light switch, and when he found one, there was no effect. He flicked it off and on again, but nothing changed. By the time the older brother made it back to the bed, the lights came back on full blast, and Sam was gone.

Dean whipped his head around the room looking for his brother but was only able to note the window Sam had opened just a few minutes before."Dammit, Sam." He muttered.

After looking for clues on the windowsill and coming up empty handed, Dean ran outside to the impala to drive to Hayley's. She was his best bet, and if Hayley _was_ a siren and _did_ end up dead, Sam and those girls would come back to their families for sure.


	6. Chapter 6

The impala's tires rattled over the clumps of gravel that were Hayley's driveway. Dean barely stopped the car from ramming into the girl's house. He marched straight out of the car and pounded on the door. "What?!" Hayley's cranky mom yelled from behind the door. "Who are you?" She asked softer, before the hinges creaked, and her face was revealed behind the cruddy old screen.

"My name's Dean. I'm with the F.B.I, is your daughter here?"

"Hay? Maybe she is." The woman cocked an eyebrow upward and leaned against the doorframe. "Why are you asking? She already talked to one of you today."

"This is going to be quick. I promise." Dean forced a smirk that wasn't even close to sincere.

"Whatever." The woman pushed the door open and allowed him to enter. "Upstairs, to the right."

Dean bolted to Hayley's door, and she opened it before he had the chance to knock. "This is bogus. I told Sam I didn't take that girl. Lay off!" She almost closed the door again, but Dean held it open easily with one hand.

"You _knew_ Sam?" He asked innocently.

"Probably better than you." She answered with sass.

"I seriously doubt that." Dean told her.

"Really? Did you know he's still mourning the death of his girlfriend? 'Cause that's kinda like what I'm doing with my friend who's been gone for days. If you'll excuse me." She tried to close the door once again, but Dean still wasn't having that. The veins in his arms showed, and his brows furrowed in confusion.

"Wait? He told you about Jessica?"

"About Jess, about the fire, about the nightmares he can't shake no matter how much nyquil he gulps." She sounded like she knew him better than Dean, as if she was teaching him about his _own brother_.

"Do you know what a siren is?" Dean asked.

"Is this some stupid setup to make a joke before a loud police car shows up to take me away? Sam has my statements. You think you know him so well? Ask him!"

"He's missing." The girl's face softened, and Dean was shocked when she actually looked… _sad_.

"He's gone too?" She asked. She seemed real torn up about it, and Dean found it weird that he felt awkward about answering the question. If she was a siren, why couldn't he just tell her yes? She already knew. Wouldn't she reveal herself right then?

Dean grabbed the melancholy girl by the shoulders, and hoisted her into the bathroom. "Let me go!" She screamed and kicked. "I'll call the cops on _you_!"

"Yeah, okay." Dean thrusted her in front of the mirror and was shocked to see her face staring back, not that of a hideous monster. "If it's not you…"

"What's not me?" She was still squirming, but her question sounded concerned, like she was captured by a psycho who was attempting to explain his new form of torture to her.

"You didn't take Sam." Dean set her next to him, and she adjusted her clothes back into place angrily.

"How would I? He's giant! I couldn't take him!"

"Then who was it… Who did Sam last come in contact with…?" The older brother was mostly talking to himself, but Hayley couldn't take her eyes off him.

"Were you two… together?"

"What?! NO!" Dean snapped out of his own trance. "He's… he's my brother." He had to work hard to keep his voice from cracking when he mentioned their relationship. What if he couldn't save Sam this time?

"Where were you two last? ...besides wherever you're staying, while you're in town."

"Uh… we stopped by that building in the city that your friend's family lives in."

"Meredith?" Hayley asked for confirmation.

"Yeah. We talked to her parents."

"Do you think it was them?" Dean's face suddenly went limp as he remembered the morning of their visit.

"No. I know who it was."


	7. Chapter 7

Sam woke up slowly, nursing a large headache and strange burning sensation on his hand. "Psst. Are you awake?" A girl's voice called in a hushed whisper.

"Hmm?" Sam responded without opening his eyes. He wasn't able to move his arms or legs. Sam's chest was tied to a post with a large rope, and he could feel his ankles roped together, as well.

"Please be awake." The girl almost begged. "I can't sit here and listen to these girls scream across the room anymore. I need to talk to someone before I descend into insanity." Sam forced his head to jerk upward as he blinked. He realized the voice was telling the truth. He looked across the room to see two girls tied to posts, just like him, but they were screaming for help. One girl, a redhead with curly locks, was even crying.

"Where am I?" He surveyed what seemed to be an unfamiliar basement.

"The basement of my apartment building." The voice confirmed. Sam looked to his right to see yet another girl tied to a post. She was calmer, though. "I wonder if my parents even know I'm here at all…" She said to herself.

"Are you Meredith?" Sam asked her suddenly. For the first time, the mystery girl looked frightened.

"How do you know me? You're working with him aren't you?! Why else would he bring a guy down here? I'm so stupid talking to you!"

"Hey. Hey. I'm not working for anyone. I don't even know why I'm here." The honesty in Sam's voice was evident, but Meredith was raised to be smart. She couldn't be too sure.

"You think a handsome guy in a suit and tie, like yourself, can just randomly get kidnapped by the man that's taken all of us _girls_? It's one thing if you were a family member of someone else that he kidnapped to cover his tracks, but _no_. You're just here alone because the old guy wanted to switch things up? _Sure._ Then, as if that weren't enough, you know my _name_? What information are you keeping from me?" Her eye's narrowed.

"I-I'm Sam Scott. I'm with the F.B.I… I was working your case… and theirs."

"Well, Detective, you found us." She said with sarcastic triumph. Their conversation seemed to die, but the room was still loud with the screams coming from the other two girls. They were yelling things like "help!" and "get us out of here!" and they seemed like they weren't planning on stopping anytime soon. Sam pitied them, knowing he and Dean had both been in the lobby, right above the girls, recently, and hadn't heard one peep.

"Don't squirm when he comes back." Meredith told Sam. He stopped immediately to look at her.

"Who? Do you know who he is?"

"I don't know his name. He works here. All I know is if you're squirming he'll tighten the ropes and knock ya out again. Hurts like a b*tch when you wake up, don't it? I hope he doesn't getcha again. The fever, chills, headaches… That's why those poor things are screaming as much as they can, when he ain't here, because they know they'll have to stop when they hear 'im coming. Otherwise, they're unconscious again and feeling like crap before they know it."

"Everything hurts." Sam mumbled.

"It goes away within the first couple of hours the original time. That's when he's able to start controlling your mind and stuff, I think. He hasn't made me do anything, but I've seen him turn other girls into his minions. I think he wants to make an army." She told him. "...Where'd he touch you?"

"Huh?"

"Where'd he touch you?" She seemed comfortable with the fact that she was talking about something supernatural, which was usually complicated for Sam and Dean to explain to people like her.

"You _know_ he's not human?" Sam asked with disbelief.

"I've been here for almost a week. I was the first to get taken. I've gotten a grasp on that fact by now. I'm surprised you're not flippin' out, Mr. Fed."

"I kinda deal with these things on the daily." Sam shrugged, beginning to squirm again. He had to escape and tell Dean.

"What? Like X-Men?" She asked.

"Something like that." Sam forced a smirk as he tried to get his throbbing hand free.

"That's where he got you?" She asked, peeking over to see Sam wince when the top of his left hand made contact with the rope. It had a few red fingerprints on it, and they burned worse than fire.

"Guess so…" Sam thought back to going to see Meredith's parents, and he suddenly remembered the old man working at the front desk. He could barely see and had to grab Sam's hand to evaluate the fake ID. "It was the guy working the front desk…" He whispered the revelation to himself.

"Hey." The girl tried to snap him out of moment of realization. "Do you think my parents are okay?"

Sam's brows furrowed in confusion. "Yeah. I talked to them earlier, they were just upset you were missing."

"Look behind us." Meredith instructed. When Sam looked, he wished he didn't. It was what seemed to be parents and small families all tied up to different objects in the large hotel basement. Sam had originally thought the four girls and himself were the only one's down there, but the rest just seemed to be unconscious. "I can't tell if he's brought them down here yet. He ties members of the same family as far away from the others as possible. He seems to be targeting real small families. The girl in front of you is practically being raised by her older sister, and the one in front of me lives with her single mom. I know them from school, but they're a little worked up to talk right now."

"And you're an only child…"

"What about you?" Meredith looked Sam over. "He seems to take a girl first and then take her family to cover his tracks. After that, since he runs the hotel, he just says the room is empty. Were you staying here or something?"

"No, I think he knew my brother and I were on to him… He wouldn't have just taken he and broken his pattern of girls for no reason."

"Well I hope you're brother doesn't end up in the pile of sleeping beauties behind us." Meredith said flatly. Sam swallowed, not wanting to talk about Dean, or the fact that he could be hurt or currently _hurting_ Hayley.

"Why are all the families unconscious?" He asked Meredith. "Why are you the only person who seems to be awake and emotionally stable?"

"Like I said, I've been here the longest. I've learned how to deal." She shrugged. "They squirmed."


	8. Chapter 8

"You!"

"What? Are you crazy?! We just went through this! I'm clean!" Hayley shouted.

"No!" Dean said as if she wasn't keeping up fast enough "I mean, my ticket to him… is you."

"What?" Hayley asked. "You wanna use me as bait for Sam's kidnapper?"

Dean shrugged.

"You're crazy."

"And _you_ fit the profile." Hayley held her hands out like she couldn't deal with having to work with a guy like Dean.

"What do you mean?"

"You're a young girl… small family… you seem to know most of the victims. I mean, you might as well be on a poster that says 'My name is Hayley, and I'm next in line'" She reacted with a gasping noise that sounded like he had insulted her with profanity, but she knew he was telling the truth.

"Sam doesn't fit the profile." She argued weakly.

"The kidnapper knew we were on to him. We were threats. Next is either you or me, so why don't we speed this up and take ourselves to him?"

"Why won't you tell me who you think it is?" Hayley whined, crossing her arms.

"Because you'd think I'm crazy."

Dean pulled the impala right in front of the building Meredith lived in. Hayley was in the back seat with a livid look on her face. "Are you _kidding_ me?" She asked.

"No." Dean replied coldly, stepping out of the vehicle. Hayley had to jog to catch up to him.

"Hey!" She said as he approached the door without her at his side. He promptly turned around and waited.

"Don't 'hey!' me, okay?" He said, setting the ground rules. "Sam is in there. Meredith is in there. The two other missing girls from that school you may or may not still go to are in there. We're gonna save them. You're going to follow my lead." With that, they both entered the building. Inside, Dean noticed the old man at the front desk, once again, staring off at nothing.

"Hey, there, Chuckles," Dean approached the desk and, to Hayley's surprise, whipped a bronze dagger out of his belt buckle and held it to the old man's throat. "Where's my brother?"


	9. Chapter 9

Sam was visited several times by the old man that day. "I've never seen anything like it." Meredith admitted. "Usually if you don't squirm or fuss, he does nothing."

"Yeah that seems to be how it's going." Sam coughed out with weak sarcasm. The man had knocked him out twice, and honestly, Meredith didn't know how he was still conscious at all.

"You hunters…" The man grumbled as he made his way down the basement stairs again. "I'll bet my bottom dollar you're brother's on his way here to kill me, as we speak." He was in front of Sam by then, and the shaggy haired boy was too tired to feel the adrenaline rush that should have been pulsing through his veins. "That's why you need to be punished… In fact, before he comes… I think I'll kill you. That way, if I die, at least you'll be gone too."

"Stop!" Meredith shouted. "He's barely alive, _right now_! Let him be!" She felt tears welling in her eyes, and she could only assume it was because she identified with Sam. They had similar situations and social expectations, but she had been there longer than him. Why did _she_ have to watch _him_ die? Why didn't the old hag kill her first? It wasn't fair to Sam or anyone.

"Time for a nap." The old man tapped her wrist, and she became dizzy, before passing out.

"Don't… touch her." Sam commanded, suddenly shivering with cold. His moist bangs stuck to his sweaty forehead, and the red fingerprints on his hands burned and itched like mosquito bites. He kept rubbing the top of his hand against the rope, which was only irritating his skin further.

Meredith wasn't kidding when she said getting knocked out several times by that guy made you feel like crap.

Sam was feeling like LOADS of crap.

Right before the man was about to give Sam another dose of his siren-infection, the walls shook slightly. "That sounds like a car pulling into the parking lot." The old man smiled a less than toothy grin. "I bet it's your stupid brother, now."


	10. Chapter 10

"Where's my brother?"

"I'm sorry, speak up." The old man toyed with Dean.

"Where's my brother, you nasty piece of siren slime?"

"Oh… I'll show you to his room." The man stood, not even acknowledging the dagger at his neck. "This way." He signaled for Hayley and Dean to follow him. After an exchange of strange glances, both of them followed him to an iron door. "In here." He said, opening it.

Both Hayley and Dean started down the stairs that they were acquainted with after the door opened. "Sam?!" Dean called. "Sammy?!" Before he heard a response, the door closed behind both Hayley and himself, and the latch, on the other side, locked. The old man had trapped them, but Dean's main focus was to find his brother, so he continued making his way down the stairs to do just that.

"Come on." He told Hayley, "They've gotta be this way."

As they arrived at the bottom of the stairs, they were greeted with several dozen people who were tied up and even a few girls screaming for help. "Sam?!" Dean shouted again. Barely any of the people stirred, and the older brother could feel his heart beating out of his chest just thinking for a split second that Sam could be… "SAM?!" Dean yelled as he walked, scanning each person to see if they were his brother.

"Hey!" One of the screaming girls stopped to look at Dean and Hayley. "Are you here to help us?" She was far across the basement, so Dean could hardly make out her face.

"Uh, you could say that," He said humbly, "but I kinda need to find my brother first. Then, I'll help the rest of you guys."

"Is your brother extremely tall?" She asked.

"… and somewhat beautiful." The other screamer added dreamily.

"Yes" Hayley answered, while Dean was still trying to figure out how to respond to the question. "That's his brother. Where is he?"

"He's over here, in front of me." Both Hayley and Dean quickly made their way to the other side of the room. Once Dean saw his brother, he kneeled down beside him and shook his shoulder roughly.

"Sammy?" His free hand moved to Sam's forehead, which appeared to be scorching hot. "What's wrong with him?" He asked the girl behind him, without drawing his eyes away from his little brother.

"The man touched him. He makes everyone tired-"

"and sometimes sick if he does it a lot. He's knocked Sam out a few times today." The other girl chimed in.

Dean looked up at Hayley. "As far as I know, sirens can't kill people, but if this guy's way of taking hold of someone is through this 'touch and sleep' thing, then we know he's cheating the system."

"I'm sorry…" Hayley wasn't able to wrap her head around all that.

"He's only supposed to make people sleep when he infects them. Instead, he's using it - and its side effects - to keep everyone under control until the infection sinks in, and he's able to control their minds. This kind of siren has to _wait_ for his infection to register."

"Is Sam going to die, then?" Hayley asked nervously. "The side effects look bad."

"We'll see if we can wake him first," Dean told her. "and if not, we'll kill that old man and save the day just us two." She looked like she had had a brick thrown at her stomach.

"Okay." She nodded slowly.

Dean shook Sam harder, forcing him to stir. "Mmmm?" Sam's head lolled to the side tiredly.

"Sammy, come on." Dean encouraged. "Wake up."

"D'n?" Sam's eyebrows bent toward one another. "It's the old guy from the desk." He paused to let out a cough. "He's using his knock-out juice to make everyone defenseless…"

"I know." Dean nodded, already beginning to untie Sam. "We gotta get you outta here."

"And all these people too." Sam added drowsily.

"Yeah, all them too. Now, come on. You're gonna be just fine." Dean attempted to pull Sam up by his arms, but the boy could barely stand.

"My hand hurts." Sam told Dean, making no attempt to rise from the floor.

"What's wrong with your hand?" Dean asked, looking at the hands he was holding. He noticed the red fingerprints. "That where he's been touchin' to knock ya out?" He asked.

"Mmm." Sam nodded. "Can I sleep now?"

"Hayley?" Dean turned to the girl beside him. "You need to help me untie all these people. Awake or not. Then, we're gonna leave Sam here and fight that thing."

"What?!"

"I thought we had established this plan already." Dean said matter-of-factly.

"But I can't fight an alarm or whatever."

"Siren." He corrected. "I'll focus on the kill. I just need you as bait. Sam can't even stand up. Are you in or out?" Hayley bit her lower lip nervously, and glanced over at Sam. He was shivering but sweating, and he seemed to be having some sort of painful delusion in his sleep. He was in no condition to fight, and she knew she was all Dean had. "Are you in or out?" Dean repeated with more urgency.

"I'm in." Hayley nodded. "Let's do this."

They both ran around the room untieing each person one by one. Dean had his eye on Sam the whole time. The boy seemed to be growing worse and more delusional, and it killed Dean to hear the word "Dad…" escape his brother's mouth more than once.

"Done." Hayley said. "We got 'em all."

"Let's find this guy… fast." Dean commanded, taking one last look at his brother before running to the stairs. "Stay here." He told the two screamers. "We'll be back."

 **I'm working on the closing chapters now. Tell me how I've done so far, in the reviews.**


	11. Chapter 11

"Come on!" Dean smacked the iron door at the top of the stairs. "Come out and fight, you b*stard!"

"What do we do?" Hayley asked. "Can you pick the lock?"

"No" Dean sighed. "It's a latch on the other side." Suddenly, they both heard everyone in the basement stand at the same time. "Sh*t." Dean said, forcing Hayley behind him, against the door.

"What are you doing?" Hayley asked irritably.

"The siren, he's telepathically controlling everyone in the basement. I'll bet he wants them to kill us before they do anything else."

"How do you know?" She asked, sounding more nervous than before.

"More than half of them were unconscious, and now everyone's up on their feet. Sam couldn't even stand on his own after a day here. The siren's the one behind this." The sound of feet in the basement grew louder as everyone made their way to the stairs. "We gotta open that door." Dean said, knocking on it loudly. "Hey, Chuckles! I know you want me dead, but what about Hayley? She kinda fits in with your whole 'young girl - small family' fetish. You really wanna waste her?"

Sam was leading the pack of minions; a sick joke on the siren's part. His eyes were feverish, and he looked ready to pass out. There he was though, looking at Dean from the bottom of the stairs with nothing but siren-induced hate in his eyes.

"You think that'll work?" Hayley asked.

"I dunno," Dean admitted with a shrug, "but if there's one thing I learned in this job, it's that monsters that like a certain thing, tend to have a hard time resisting it." He began to run back down the stairs.

"What are you doing?! They'll kill you!" Hayley yelled as Dean quickly closed the gap between him and the mob waiting at the bottom of the staircase. Just as Sam threw a punch, Dean grabbed his arm and sliced a bit of it, dampening the dagger with blood. He then proceeded to run up the stairs as the door shot open. The siren grabbed Hayley, but Dean squeezed out the door in time.

"Let her go!" Dean shouted. He re-latched the door, keeping all the infected people in the basement. "Or I'll kill you with this." He held up his dripping dagger. A stab from a bronze dagger dipped in the blood of someone infected by the siren would kill it for sure, so Dean was surprised when the old man's reaction was laughter.

"You think I'm a _siren_?" He cackled. "Have you noticed anything different about me?"

"So what? You're a different breed. It doesn't matter. This'll still end you." Dean stated seriously. The man had Hayley in a headlock, and Dean was beginning to feel guilty about using the girl as bait.

"A different breed… or a hybrid?" The man smiled creepily.

"What?" Dean asked, bewildered.

"My _mom_ was a siren," He confirmed. "but my _dad_ was a vetala." The man's eyes turned snake-like and quickly returned to normal after a few seconds.

"You're… a mix?" Dean asked, barely believing it.

"I'm able to have the mind-control of a siren and the knock out of a vetala, all with one touch." Dean looked at his dagger. A vetala had to be killed with a silver knife to the heart. If he had to do _both_ to kill this thing, he needed to make a trip to his car.

"Well…" Dean sauntered toward the man, shrugging. "I guess this thing is useless." He gestured to the dagger. As the man nodded, Dean struck him in the gut, evoking a fearful squeal out of Hayley. "Come on!" Dean grabbed her by her waist and threw her in front of him. "Run!" He yelled. They headed for the exit and out to the parking lot. Dean swiftly unlocked his car and grabbed his silver knife from the trunk.

"What about Sam?" Hayley asked nervously through heavy breaths.

"Sam's gonna be fine, but that bronze dagger only did half the job. I still need to get him with this." Dean showed her his silver knife. "I hit that guy in the heart with this, and it's all over."

"So what's the plan? We're just gonna march back in there and stab the guy?" She asked him as if he was crazy.

"It won't be that easy." Dean told her, closing the trunk and pocketing his knife. "The guy's wounded, but not enough to keep him from opening that latch and sending his little minions to come and get us."

"So what are you saying?" Hayley asked, her eyes frantic.

"I'm saying… We're gonna fight, and we're gonna kill this evil sonofab*tch." Dean began walking toward the door.

"Are you kidding?" Hayley caught up to him. "You said I didn't have to fight. I was just gonna be bait."

"No." Dean shook his head. "I said I'd focus on the kill, and you would be bait. You _were_ bait, and believe me, _I'm_ gonna be the one who kills this thing."

"But-"

"Okay," Dean stopped walking and turned to look at her straight in the eye. "I don't like the idea of you fighting in there, either. All right? I would much rather go by myself or have Sam by my side, but I can't leave you out here. Some of the infected people are going to make it past me, and I can't risk leaving you out here in the open asking for a sneak attack. I'd like to have you alert, and in there fighting the best you can."

Hayley's voice was quiet and almost scared. "Dean… I don't want to kill anyone. I have this 'bad girl' reputation… but I don't want anyone's blood on my hands."

"I said 'fight'" Dean told her gently. "Not kill. These are civilians. We want to help them. We want as many alive at the end of this as we can have, all right? All I'm saying is if one comes after you, you're gonna react with skin on skin self defense. You with me?" Hayley nodded. "Good. Let's go. He's probably up and opening the latch by now."

Dean and Hayley ran into the building, and sure enough, the old man was sitting with his back against the door as he slowly bled from the gut. His hand was reaching for the latch, and before Dean could stab him with the knife, the door flung open, and Sam rushed out.

"Just one." The old man muttered weakly, making Sam close and latch the door behind him. "I only need this one person, to stop you in your tracks." Dean's chest tightened. He didn't want to fight Sam, but he knew he had to do it.

Sam ran at Dean and punched him in the throat. Dean gasped for air and fell to his knees, but his younger brother quickly picked him up by the collar of his shirt and began punching his face as hard as he could.

"Sam, stop it!" Hayley yelled. "He's your brother, dammit!" Sam's fist paused as his head turned to look at her, and Dean took the moment to spit out a large sum of blood that had collected in his mouth. Sam mechanically dropped Dean on his side and approached the girl.

"Shut up!" He said in a monotone voice. Dean's eyes grew wide, when he noticed what Sam was about to do to a girl who could barely fight. Wiping the blood from his lip, he swept his legs across the floor and kicked his little brother's legs out from under him. Sam fell hard on his back, which gave Dean time to be able to stand and lung at the old man. The blade impaled the hybrid in the heart. A scream escaped his lips, and Dean waited for him to go completely limp before determining he was dead.

"Dean." Hayley's nervous voice made him turn around. She was on her knees next to an unconscious Sam.

Dean was at his brother's side in an instant. He assessed the younger boy's body for injuries, feeling his wrists, chest, and finally, neck for any sign of a pulse or even just a breath.

"Come on, Sammy." Dean whispered, forgetting Hayley was even there. He placed his hand in front of Sam's mouth, and when he didn't feel an exhale, he panicked.

"Is he okay? You said he'd be okay." Hayley asked with tears in her eyes. Dean's head snapped up to look at her.

"You think I want him like this? You think I just threw that statement out there to disappoint you in the end? He's my brother! You're just someone he screwed!" Hayley's face quickly transformed from sadness and worry to plain anger.

"I'm going to go help all the others out of the basement." She said flatly. Then she stood, and for the next few minutes she was sure to have her hands full attempting to get everyone awake and outside, away from Sam and Dean.

In the meantime, Dean started chest compressions. He wasn't going to lose Sam, that's for sure. Not like this. "1, 2, 3…" He muttered to himself as he tried to restart his brother's heart. "Jesus, Sammy, it ain't ever easy with you, is it?" He whispered as his compressions sped up. Dean was beginning to lose hope, though he wasn't about to admit that out loud anytime soon, but the flame inside him flickered slightly.

"Please don't die." He said in a barely audible tone.

Suddenly, he heard a hack. Within a few seconds it was consistent coughing. "Sam?" Dean asked, stopping the compressions and helping his brother sit up. Sam gagged a few times, but they were only dry heaves, and Dean was there, rubbing small circles around his brother's back until they began to calm down. "Let it out, it's okay." He soothed. Sam didn't look all that much better than he did in the basement. It made sense, though. The monster was half vetala, and their venom's symptoms took time to wear off. "How ya feeling?" Dean asked, when he was sure Sam wasn't gonna puke.

"Like I was hit by a truck." Sam admitted, placing his head in his hands as his elbows rested on his knees. "Two trucks." He corrected, seconds later.

"The old guy was half vetala. Not just siren. That gives it twice the power." Dean told him. "So you're gonna be sportin' that little fever of yours for the next few days or so."

"I don't have a fever." Sam mumbled. Dean pulled his brother's head from his hands instantly and felt his forehead.

"Yeah ya do." He said matter-of-factly, before letting Sam's head return to his hands. "Let's get the hell outta dodge, before you fall asleep on me." Dean stood, and hoisted Sam up by his underarms. "Can ya walk?" He asked.

"Yes, Dean. I can walk." Sam said, stumbling slightly but pushing himself to make it outside.

When the boys opened the front door, the parking lot was filled with the people from the basement as well as EMTs and a few ambulances. Dean rolled his eyes when they were almost to the car, and he saw Hayley running toward him and his brother.

"Sam!" She called, jogging up to them. "Dean." She greeted coldly.

"Uh huh." Dean gave her a nod and looked away.

"Hey, Hayley." Sam smiled, glad to see she was okay.

"I called 911." She informed them both. "I wasn't sure if you wanted me to, but you weren't in such good shape" she gestured to Sam, "and I had to get these people some help-"

"No. You did the right thing. Thanks." Sam confirmed.

"No problem." She smirked.

"We gotta get back to the motel." Dean cut in. "Sam's gotta rest up." Sam gave Dean another one of those are-you-kidding-me looks, before he quietly said his goodbye to Hayley and walked around the impala to the passenger side. Sam got in, but Dean, however, stayed for an extra minute. "You gave it your all in there." He commented.

"I didn't really have a choice." Hayley said, stuffing her hands in her pockets.

"Look, I got a little frustrated-"

"A little?" Her eyes widened.

"Okay! A lot. In my defense, my brother was dead on the floor." Dean shrugged.

"Fine." Hayley nodded.

"But it was wrong," Dean added slowly. "so I apologize for being a d*uche." Hayley smiled.

"Well, you did save a good amount of Boston. I mean, this city lives off of small families. Who knows how many more he would have taken."

"That's the job." Dean forced a fake smirk.

"Sam gonna be okay?" She asked, more casually this time. It was as if she already knew the answer.

"The next few days'll be his own mini-hell, but yeah. He'll be fine."

"Good." Hayley nodded. "I hope I see you both around."

"Yeah. See ya." With that, Hayley returned to one of the ambulances to talk about something with an EMT. Dean smirked a little, and when he got into the car, Sam was already asleep.

 **Review please! Hope you're enjoying it**


	12. Chapter 12

"Hey." A pillow smacked Dean in the face, waking him up. "Get up." Dean opened his eyes to see his brother up and making coffee.

"What's up, Starbucks?" Dean teased, sitting up with a smirk and rubbing his eyes. "You fully awake this time?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sam asked in a deep raspy voice that he usually had when he was sick.

"It means you've been delusional with fever for two days straight trying to get that venom out of your system. You good?"

"I feel fine." Sam shrugged, setting two coffee-filled mugs on the table. Dean swiftly rose from the bed and placed his hand on Sam's forehead as the other slid the coffee out of Sam's reach.

"No coffee for you. Juice only."

"You're like a helicopter parent." Sam rolled his eyes.

"And you're like a snot-nose little kid who won't go to bed and get better."

"I'm better." Sam stated.

"You're warm." Dean corrected. "It's only been two days, maybe you need three."

"Can't sleep." Sam's raspy voice made the words sound more painful than they were. He dragged himself over to the mini fridge and took out a carton of orange juice, before he proceeded to pour himself a glass.

"What? Why?"

"It's just… all morning. I've been thinking…"

"Well that's never good." Dean said facetiously, but he didn't take his eyes off his brother.

"Meredith _lived_ in that building, so she must've been touched at some point… but the others… how'd the old man touch them…? Why'd he choose those people? They lived a good distance away." Dean's brows furrowed.

"Well… I told you. The other two girls knew Meredith and Hayley. Maybe they visited her or something." He shrugged.

"You wanna go off an 'or something' to pretend this case is closed?"

"The case _is_ closed, Sam. The monster's dead, the victims are okay, you're alive-"

"I'm checkin' this out." Sam grabbed his jacket and headed for the door, but Dean caught his wrist.

"Yeah, right. You're staying here."

"What are you afraid of, Dean?" Sam looked his brother over. "We always have to check something out when we're not sure. What? Are you scared of me getting hurt? I survived-"

"Barely!" Dean said, letting Sam's arm go, once he was sure he would stay to listen. "You were _dead_ , Sam. On the floor. Dead… And the last couple days? You've been tossing and turning shouting things I can't even comprehend."

"Dean-"

"You were asking for Dad…" The older brother's eyes teared up. "You were _screaming_ about Mom… about Jess…" At the mention of his girlfriend, Sam averted his eyes in a hopeless attempt to collect himself.

"You shouldn't have had to listen to that."

"That's not the point!" Dean yelled. "The point is that I don't like seeing you that way… I'm sure _you_ don't like me seeing you that way… I don't want you sick. I don't want you hurting. I _especially_ don't want you dead… Not again."

"You can't protect me from everything." Sam said, surveying his brother.

"I know," Dean nodded. "your delusions told me that." Sam looked down at his feet, embarrassed. "But I'd like to have time to help you through the things _I_ can't save you from. I don't want you to be dead before we talk about any of this."

"So what?" Sam asked, making eye contact, once again. "Case closed, until another person dies? Hunting's delayed because you need to dress me in bubble wrap and talk about our problems?"

"No." Dean shook his head. "I'll come with you to talk to the girls." Sam nodded in agreement. "But pack your bags." Dean added, "We're packing the car and checking out of this hellhole. I'm not staying here another night." Sam once again nodded, but this time it was with understanding.

 **It's not the end! Get ready for a twist! Review Review Review.**


	13. Chapter 13

Dean drove quickly to his favorite house out of the three missing girls'. That was the house owned only by the older, and extremely attractive, sister of vic number two. He noticed a thin layer of sweat forming on Sam's brow and began to wonder how long the kid had actually slept the previous night. _When he said he was thinking 'all morning', did he mean since dawn or one o'clock?_ "Hey." Dean glanced at Sam for a few seconds before his eyes returned to the road. "Are you hot in here?"

"Are you crazy? I'm freezing." Even Dean knew that wasn't good. _One o'clock it is_ , he thought.

"You didn't sleep long last night, did you?" He asked.

"I think I slept a little… but…" Sam trailed off.

"...What?" Dead egged on.

"About the delusions-"

"What?" Dean frowned when Sam's face suddenly gave it all away. "You remember them, don't you?" "You weren't completely gone with the fever, _you_ were still there… Seeing things."

"Uh… yeah. Don't beat around the bush, there…" Sam said hesitantly, hoping his sarcastic reflexes wouldn't make his brother explode.

"You saw Dad. And Mom… and Jess." Dean nodded with frustration, staring at the road ahead. "Like when you were all full of demon blood?"

"Well, both demon blood and monster venom have to work their way out of my system. They aren't that different from each other."

"What'd you see?" Dean asked, straight-faced. "I want to know."

"I don't want to talk about it." Sam stated quietly, looking out the window.

"Is this a guilt thing?" Dean asked, looking over at Sam for a split second. He thought he saw his brother flinch at the word 'guilt', but it could have been a shiver.

"I said I don't want to-" The impala's breaks skidded to a stop in front of a girl. A girl with dark hair accompanied by purple strips. Her aquamarine eyes stared back at the boys.

"Hayley." Sam said mechanically, already opening the door and stepping onto the road.

"Sam." She said, breathing heavily, due to the fact that she was almost hit by a car a few seconds before.

"Dean!" Dean announced his own name, annoyed as he stepping out of the car. "What are you doing crossing a busy city street, like this, in the morning?"

"What's it to ya?" She asked bitterly, her body still turned in Sam's direction. He appeared to be looking her over for injuries before speaking up.

"We could've killed you." Sam said softly, with adrenaline still evidently pumping inside him.

"But you didn't." She smirked. "Now, I'll be on my way."

"Where?" Dean asked curiously.

"Africa." She spat sarcastically, finally turning toward him to answer. "Where do you think? Around town."

"Around town? Like to little girls' houses?" Dean asked, more firm this time.

"Ew, you perv." She grimaced, turning to walk away, but she ended up an inch away from Sam's chest. "Excuse me." She tried to get past him, but he moved to block her each time. "Sam. Move over." She said irritably, and suddenly, Sam's face went blank as he stepped out of her way. Then he looked confused at himself.

"Dude?!" Dean exclaimed at Sam before reaching for Hayley's wrist, but she turned and backhanded him quickly.

"Sam. Get your brother under control." Hayley commanded, and Sam shoved Dean out of the girl's way.

"Let's just go, man." He said.

"What's up with you?" Dean asked, examining his brother. He let the phrase "Holy sh*t." slip out of his mouth before he looked at Hayley with wide eyes. "That's impossible. You were _you_ when I put you in front of the mirror."

"There are perks to being half human." She smiled, as she walked away.

"Sam! Let me through." Dean attempted to get past his brother, but he couldn't. "You're under a spell, dammit! Let me through!"

"Let's just go." Sam said again.

"Fine." Dean grabbed his brother, and practically tossed him in the car. He went around back and grabbed his blades, then within seconds, Dean was in the car, and they were driving, at full speed, onto the curb and toward Hayley.

"NO! Dean!" Sam shouted, but the car had already made contact with her legs, causing her to tumble to the ground. Dean rushed out of the car and locked Sam inside before grabbing Hayley's wrists to pin her down.

" _You_ were the one picking the people who would go into the basement. You and the old man were working together like some weird monster hybrid cult."

"Well," She smiled. " _I_ wasn't _picking_. Daddy was the one that wanted the smartest, the most athletic, the most-"

"Daddy?"

"The old man." She beamed before letting her face fall in disgust. "He fell in love with that tramp of a human."

"Your mother?"

"The first he ever infected." She smiled proudly. "Then he wanted to revolutionize our powers. He wanted me to work for him and help make an army. Maybe even conquer the world. First he wanted whoever the smartest girl in school was, so I quickly picked Meredith. She was so eager to have a friend, I could have made her jump off a bridge without laying a finger on her."

"You picked whoever you thought was the best fit from your high school." Dean realized. "You knew everyone's place and rep... it was so easy."

"Plus, I was the one that had that bad girl rep, so one tiny pinch in class to pass on the venom, never made anyone think I was acting out of character."

"And you were the first to infect Sam?" Dean's eyes were red-hot with anger.

"In the flesh."

"Not for long." Dean reached into his pocket and stabbed both blades into the girl's heart. He waited to make sure she was dead, before yanking them out, and walking back to the car. Sam was awake, but he was hunched over in pain. "Breathe through it, man." Dean slid into the car and squeezed his brother's shoulder.

"It's like that hangover at Pierpont Inn." Sam managed to say.

"You gonna be sick?" Dean asked.

"I'm fairly confident." Sam nodded, opening his door and getting violently ill beside the car. Dean gave him a minute to collect himself before speaking again.

"I guess this is gonna be how you get two-monsters-worth of crap outta ya… You good?" He asked, glancing over at Sam, who now was simply resting heavily on the door.

"Yeah" He nodded. "Let's get the hell outta here." He pulled his door closed and leaned against it once again.

 **Review to tell me how you liked the twist. Plus, only ONE Chapter to go! Get ready!**


	14. Chapter 14

In less than two days, Sam was back on his feet. Getting ALL the venom out of his system was nothing short of miserable, for both brothers, but at least it was over.

"I'm fine, Dean." Sam swore, forty-eight hours after his brother had killed Hayley.

"I just wanna make sure." Dean said, grabbing a thermometer from the first aid kit. "Open." He instructed, and Sam surrendered by opening his mouth. He did this partly to make Dean happy, and partly to confirm for himself that his own personal hell was over. "98.8. Good enough for me." Dean nodded approvingly.

"Good." Sam sighed happily. "'Cause I found us another case."

"Whoa, wait… when?"

"I looked into a few things when I was up and about…" Sam shrugged.

"When you couldn't sleep?" Dean corrected his brother more than he asked him.

"Yeah… It seems like a clean-cut poltergeist in Nevada. You in?" Sam seemed so eager to forget all about Boston and run across the country to this new case. He was so excited to be back in the game.

"Hold on a second." Dean said slowly. "Sit down." Sam raised an eyebrow curiously, but sat down on his bed anyway. "We're not going anywhere, until we talk about a few things."

"What?" The way Sam asked had sounded painful, like he was slowly tearing off a bandaid.

"For starters, the delusions." Dean said forwardly. "I know you're keeping a whole lotta things inside you, and the way I see it, you wanna run from whatever happened here, but you and I both know there ain't no escaping the foundation of these delusions, until we confront them head on."

"That's a little hypocritical, don't ya think?" Sam asked sourly. "I mean, come on, Dean. _All you do_ is keep things in."

"Shut up." Dean said strictly. "Don't turn this on me. We're talking Sam, right now."

"I don't wanna talk Sam!"

"Why the hell not?!"

"Because I don't like him, all right?!" Sam suddenly got quiet. Dean just stood there, looking at his brother with wide eyes.

"This _is_ a guilt thing?" He asked, softer. Sam swallowed. "Well, hell, Sam. You threw _that_ much out there, let's get crackin'."

"I'm not a _good_ person, Dean. I'm not the same as you."

"What're you talking about?" Sam's eyes were on the floor, staring at the mangy carpet, and all Dean could see was the top of his mop of hair. "Hey, look at me." It wasn't a command, it actually sounded slightly like a plead.

Sam's head rose to make eye contact with his brother's. "If I was quiet, Mom wouldn't have walked into that nursery. If I was there to keep her safe… or even told her the truth… Jess would still be alive." Sam averted his eyes before saying, "I knew Dad was going to do something stupid with the yellow-eyed demon… and I pressured him… I made him see how upset I was with your condition, and I was _so_ rude to him when he was alive, he killed himself to bring you back because he thought that I needed you more." Dean stared helplessly, even when his brother's gaze returned to meet his. "There are multiple ways I coulda stopped Dad's death. And Mom's… and Jess's… You know it, too, don't lie and say you don't." Dean began to pace the length of the room, rubbing his hand over his face as he thought things over. "Come on, man, say something." Sam begged.

Dean stopped to turn to his brother with his hand out in front of him, "Christ, Sam. Where do I start?... You were a baby when Mom died. How could you control whether or not she came in to check on you, or whether or not you made a sound. You were a damn baby!" Dean shook his head. "And Dad? His death's on himself. Hell, if we wanted to play the blame game, I guess it's on me. I mean, I was the one who needed to be saved. Why would he make a deal if there was nothing he needed?"

"But I knew he was going to-"

"No you didn't." Dean shook his head. "You suspected something, but I know for a fact, you didn't know he'd do something _that_ extreme." Sam's eyes were teary, and he blinked a few times to try to keep them under control. "And Jess. Sammy, you gotta know that isn't on you."

"The nightmares, Dean? I literally _saw_ her death play out in my head _multiple_ times."

"And who in their right mind thinks dreams are gonna come true?"

"I shoulda warned her… Told her about what we do."

"You weren't living this life anymore. You got out. You shouldn't have _had_ to tell her."

"No I didn't." Sam was the one to shake his head, this time. "I was never out. Not completely."

" _You_ thought you were." Dean disagreed. "Once again, you could blame that on me, too, if you wanted. I'm the one that took you away from Stanford."

"Dean-"

"I'm serious, Sam. I have guilt too, but you can't let it cloud how you see yourself. I cope with it everyday. There's no good way to get all the guilty thoughts out of your mind, but think about it, man. All the 'what if' scenarios going off in your mind, right now… they mean nothing. They didn't happen. They won't happen. So whatever it is that _did_ happen, is going to have to be dealt with… Those deaths are absolutely, one hundred percent, not the fault of Sam Winchester. You hear me?" Sam nodded. It was slow, at first, but it picked up speed as what his brother said registered.

"Some days are just harder than others." Sam admitted quietly.

"I know." Dean nodded. "Come on. Bring it in." Sam stood to hug his brother, and to his surprise, Dean hugged back. He had meant every word he said, and that was for sure. He was really trying to get his point across.

"Thanks." Sam wiped his eyes and smirked, letting Dean go. "This is kinda a chick-flick moment, ya know?" He asked.

"I know." Dean returned the smirk, lightly slapping Sam across the face as he made his way to his own bed. "You want to blame yourself for anything, you blame yourself for making me do that."

"Yeah. _I'm_ the one you made _you_ hug _me_." Both Sam and Dean grabbed their bags and packed their things.

"I think that was evident, yeah." Dean nodded as they headed out the door.

"So, Bon Jovi on the way to Nevada?" Sam asked.

"In your delusions, Sammy."

 _The End!_

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